A Life Less Ordinary
by UnalignedSuccubus
Summary: What do you do when it turns out that your entire life has been a lie? Sometimes people you meet change your life in a way you never expected. Rated T for now possibly becoming M later in the story. (the summary sucks, but give it a read)
1. Chapter 1

**_A/N: So this is something I wrote when I didn't have my laptop or internet (made me remember how irritating it is to actually have to write things). It's not Valkubus, I repeat not Valkubus. Not sure where it came from, not sure where it's going. I have 6 chapters already written, writing them up on the laptop now so will probably post more than one part tonight. Let me know if you actually want more. Hope you enjoy it. Read, review and enjoy!_**

Chapter One

There was something different about Tamsin, I knew from the moment I laid eyes on her that there was a lot more to her than there appeared to be. What caught my attention first was, obviously, her looks. She was tall, at a rough guess I'd put her at 5'10", she had blonde hair that came to below her shoulders, ice green eyes that were probably the most stunning eyes I'd ever seen in my life. It was pretty easy to see that she worked out. From the reaction of most of the guys, and some of the other women in the bar that night it was obvious that I wasn't the only one who found her very easy on the eyes.

The moment she and her friends had walked into the bar I had been glad I moved back to Toronto. I'm a profiler by profession, specialising in criminal case, I had worked for some pretty important agencies and had travelled the world by the time I turned 28. My speciality may have been criminal profiling by my passion was the unexplained supernatural cases.

I had been born in Toronto, my mother was English, my father Canadian. My mother had moved back to England when I was less than a year old and she had taken me with her. My father was never mentioned and I had learned from a young age not to ask. When I was 25 I used some of my contacts to track him down, I had found a photograph of him and my mother when I was emptying my mother's house after she passed away. I had given my contacts my father's picture. It hadn't taken them long to tell me he was still living in Toronto. When they sent me photographs I thought they must have mistaken him for his son as he hadn't aged from the picture of him and my mother that I had found. My aunt had confirmed it was my father, but she had warned me to stay away from him, telling me that it was a lot more complicated than it seemed to be. She was right about that.

At a guess I would have put my father in his late 30's or early 40's in the picture with my mother. I jokingly as my aunt if he was some kind of supernatural being that didn't age. She had gone as white as a sheet and told me in no uncertain terms to never mention it again. I think that is what really sparked my interest in all things supernatural.

I had found a ground of people online who believed that there was a secret race living amongst us, they held down regular jobs, paid taxes and raised families just like humans. But they all had supernatural abilities, lived a heck of a lot longer than humans did and in some cases actually fed off humans. The online group called them the Fae. According to them all the stories we read of fairies and other beings as children were based on truth. To them, mythology was alive and well, in the form of the Fae.

I had some kind of gift myself, I was a telepath, I could read thoughts. Not everyone's but the majority of people. I had learned, over time, to control it, I had learned to read specific minds only when I wanted to. My mother told me stories she had been told as a child, our family line contained some pretty powerful witches, and maybe my mind reading was a result of that. Apparently my crazy aunt who was locked away in a mental hospital had the same gift, but she had never been able to teach herself to pick and choose the thoughts she heard and it drove her mad.

Anyway, on my move back to Toronto I had got a job with the 39th Division, the Homicide Unit of the Toronto Police. They hired me as a Detective, partly due to my profiling skills and partly due to the fact that there had only been 3 cases in my career that I hadn't solved. The day after I first saw Tamsin was my first day at work. My new partner was apparently off on sick leave so the chief partnered me, temporarily, with Detective Dyson Thornwood. He seemed as thrilled about it as I was. According to the chief, Dyson's old partner of nearly 10 years had passed away recently, murdered while trying to defend his girlfriend. They hadn't officially caught the guy who did it, but something told me they were no longer looking, which meant they suspected he was already dead. From the passion that burned in Dyson's blue eyes when Hale, his old partner, was mentioned I suspected they were right and the man who had killed Hale had already faced some kind of justice.

While I was sitting at my desk, opposite Dyson, a brunette walked into the station and over to Dyson. I recognised her as one of the girls who had been with Tamsin in the bar the previous evening. Something in her eyes told me she recognised me too. While she was talking to Dyson I kept my eyes on the computer screen in front of me, doing my best to show that I wasn't, intentionally, listening to their conversation. The girl, Bo, kept glancing over at me every now and again, but I did my best to ignore her. After a couple of minutes I let my shields down in my mind, listening to Bo's thoughts. She was amused that Dyson had a human partner and wondered how it would affect their other investigations.

While Bo and Dyson were talking I decided to look up my father address and pull up whatever information the police had on him. I couldn't deny I was curious, and listening to Bo's thoughts about me being human did nothing to quell that curiosity. I found very little about my father on the police database other than that he owned a string of nightclubs in and around the Toronto area, he had 6 sons and was un-married, thought there was a note that said he had been married though his wife was deceased. I knew my parents were never married, they had a very informal 'hand-joining' as my mother put it one day when she drank too much during one of her afternoons out shopping with her friends, but it was never a legally recognised union, so to speak. Which meant my father had either been married before he met my mother, or he married afterwards. I checked on a local map of the area just where my father lived, and the quickest way to get there from the station. I made a mental note of the directions, as I had a photographic memory it wasn't hard, there was an almost mental imprint of the map in my mind. I checked the time, it was 1pm, time for my lunch break. According to my calculations I could go and check out my father's place and be back well within the hour.

I stood up, causing both Bo and Dyson to look at me.

"Is if okay if I go for lunch?" I asked Dyson.

"Yeah, sure," he replied, "be back in an hour."

"Okay." I replied with a polite nod before turning to leave.

As I was leaving I heard Bo talking to Dyson.

"So, how's the human partner thing working for you?" Bo asked, I could hear the amusement in her voice.

"It's temporary, and I'm not sure she's as human as she appears." Dyson replied.

"What?" Bo asked.

"There's more to her than just a simple human." He said.

I didn't hear any more of their conversation as I made my way to the elevator.

x-x

My father lived on a gated estate. There was one big house and 7 slightly smaller houses, plus a few other smaller houses dotted around the grounds. I was parked up on a disused driveway opposite the gates, watching. I saw a guy walk out of the main house, two small children with him, a boy and a girl. I knew from the photo I had that he wasn't my father, but he had enough of the same facial characteristics for me to guess they were closely related, his son maybe. The fact that I had more family, half-brothers, didn't bother me as much as I thought it would. I had often wondered if my father ever had other children, I guessed he would have. A quick look down at my phone let me know it was time to head back to the station.

x-x

As soon as I got back Dyson had left to go for his lunch. I was sitting at my desk catching up on on-going cases when I caught sight of a blonde walking towards the desk. I looked up properly to see Tamsin. As Dyson knew Bo and Bo had been at the bar with Tamsin it only stood to reason that Dyson knew Tamsin.

"I'm looking for Dyson." She said.

"Erm," I replied, swallowing and trying to get my mind to remember where Dyson was, "he's… out to lunch."

"Okay," Tamsin said, her amusement at my stuttering clearly written on her face, "can you let him know I stopped by?"

"Sure." I said.

She turned to leave before turning back.

"Didn't I see you at the Q Bar last night?" she asked.

"I was there, so yeah, maybe," I said, falling over my words again, causing Tamsin to actually smile, this wasn't going as we as I'd hoped, "I'm new in town, obviously, and it looked like fun."

"You're British right?" she asked.

"No, technically I'm Canadian," I said, "I was born here in Toronto, my mum took me to England when I was a year old."

"What brought you back?" she asked, seemingly genuinely interested.

"Curiosity." I answered honestly.

"Good answer," she said with a smile and a nod, "I'm Tamsin by the way."

"Aeryn," I said, "nice to meet you."

"Likewise." She replied, with another soft smile.

"Tamsin, stop chatting up the fresh meat and let's go!" Someone called from the doorway.

I looked over and saw another of the girls from the previous night. Tamsin laughed.

"I'll see you around." She said to me.

"Possibly." I replied

She walked towards the door.

"Thanks for that meat-bag." She said to the girl.

"Well standing around here while you make friends isn't going to get me those new shoes." The girl replied.

Tamsin looked back once more, smiled again, then she and the girl left.

It wasn't long after they left that Dyson returned from lunch.

"Tamsin was here looking for you." I said as he sat down.

"Did she mention why?" he asked, taking his phone out of his pocket.

"Nope, she just said to let you know she stopped by." I said.

"Was she alone?" he asked.

"No, she was with another girl," I said, trying to recall what the other girl looked like, "dark hair, stunning blue eyes."

"Kenzi," he said, "Hales girlfriend."

I didn't know what to say, thankfully Dyson didn't leave the silence hanging, he dialled a number on his phone.

"Hey… Got told you were looking for me earlier…" he said into the phone, obviously talking to Tamsin, "Okay… Will I see you at the Dal later, I missed our games of pool last night… Right, okay, well if you get the chance… Sure, will do."

He hung up the phone and looked at me.

"Tamsin told me to tell you she said hi." He said.

I nodded a little before focusing more intently on my screen.

Something in the way Dyson had talked to Tamsin on the phone let me know he cared about her, a lot, possibly more than just a friend, passing on the message had irritated him a little. I decided to test out his mind, find out what it would tell me about not only Dyson but his relationship with Tamsin.

Dyson's mind was strange, I was getting two very different brain patterns, that of a man and that of an animal. As if he could sense what I was doing he started looking around the room. As his eyes settled on me I was reading through a file in front of me. I looked up at him.

"Are you okay Dyson?" I asked, feigning innocence, "you've gone a little pale."

"I'm fine." He said in a huff, forcing himself to look at the file on his desk.

I made a mental note to do a little checking into Dyson when I was away from the station. The phone rang and Dyson answered it.

"Yeah…" he said, "Bo… I'll be right there."

He hung up and I looked at him, questioningly.

"Someone broke into Bo's house while she was out." He said.

"So let's go." I replied, standing up.

"I can deal with this one." He said.

"Dyson, like it or not," I said, putting my leather jacket on, "we're partners, for however short amount of time, no matter how much neither of us a liking it, your jobs are my jobs. So let's go."

I could swear I saw him smile a little as I turned toward the door.


	2. Chapter 2

**_A/N: Part two. Not sure if people like this or not, one review said it was confusing. Stick with it, maybe this one explains things a little more. I'm not one of those writers who demands reviews, but something would be nice on this one so I know whether it's a waste of time writing up the rest of it lol. This is a longer part than the last. Read, review and enjoy!_**

Chapter Two

As we pulled up outside what appeared to be an abandoned building I saw Bo standing outside and realised it wasn't so abandoned. Tamsin and Kenzi were also there.

"Does Bo live here alone?" I asked.

"No, she shares the house with Kenzi and Tamsin." Dyson replied as we got out of the car.

I closed the passenger door as another car pulled up behind us and a woman got out. It was the final person from the previous night.

"And that is…?" I asked Dyson.

"Lauren," he said, "Bo's girlfriend."

We walked over to them and I noticed a small smile form on Tamsin's lips.

"Hi…" she said, "again."

"Hi…" I replied with a smile.

I noticed Dyson watching us, like he was curious at the exchange. He saw me look over at him and quickly turned to Bo.

"Did they take anything?" he asked.

"It's difficult to tell," Bo replied, "the place is pretty trashed. But I know they took a couple of books that Trick leant me."

"So chances are we're dealing with…" he started to say, before stopping himself, it was like he was rewording what he had been about to say, "Someone who knows what they were looking for."

"It certainly looks that way." Bo answered.

"We'll get someone out here to dust for prints," Dyson said, "see if we can't get a hit."

He looked over at me.

"Want me to deal with that?" I asked.

"Please," Dyson said, "I'm going to check inside."

"Okay." I replied, walking over to the car to make the calls as that's where I had left my phone.

As I got back out of the car after making the call I could hear the group talking. They were obviously deep in conversation so instead of interrupting them I stayed by the car, looking like I was checking something on my phone.

"There's certainly something different about her." Dyson said.

"You think she's batting for your team?" Kenzi asked.

"Someone tried reading my thoughts earlier at the station," Dyson replied, "I looked around and didn't see anyone who I haven't worked with every day for at least 2 years, apart from her."

"What did you say her name was?" Lauren asked,

"Aeryn." Tamsin said.

I felt Tamsin look over at me, but kept looking at my phone while I was leaning against the passenger side of the car.

"Aeryn Lancaster." Dyson said.

"Is that her car?" Lauren asked, looking over at the car.

"Yes," Dyson replied, "we had to bring her car as she pretty much insisted on coming with me."

"A car matching that description was seen parked on a little dirt track opposite the Franklin estate earlier," Lauren said, "it stayed for 10 minutes then drove away. Joey Franklin talked to Evony about it earlier, and I… overheard."

"What time?" Dyson asked, looking over at me, his face full of suspicion.

"They noticed it at 1:25 this afternoon," Lauren said, "Joey was taking his kids to the Zoo or something."

"She was on her lunch break." Dyson replied.

"What's a run of the mill human detective doing sitting outside a high ranking Dark Elders house?" Bo asked no one in particular.

"There's been a long running rumour amongst Dark circles that about 29 years Marcus Franklin started a relationship with an English woman," Tamsin said, telling them what she knew about my father, "her name was Stephanie something… they had a daughter. Less than a year later the woman and the baby vanished. As the woman was human the general consensus was that he killed her and kid… But what if he didn't?"

"You mean what if Aeryn is Franklin's daughter?" Dyson asked, disbelief pretty evident in his voice.

"That's exactly what I mean," Tamsin continued, "earlier I asked her if she was British, she told me she'd been born right here in Toronto but her mother took her to England when she was less than a year old."

"And she's 28," Dyson replied, "it would fit."

"Someone needs to tell Evony." Lauren said.

I couldn't help but wonder who this Evony woman was.

"She's human Lauren." Tamsin said.

"If she's his daughter…" Lauren said, "You know how powerful he is Tamsin, you know how pure his bloodline is… what if, due to his bloodline he passed something on to her, from what Dyson said about someone trying to read his mind she appears to be a reader, that isn't a typical human thing."

"I say we wait," Tamsin said, "see how it plays out."

"That's because T here is developing a little crush on our new possibly part-Fae friend." Kenzi said.

I nearly dropped my phone, it wasn't Tamsin developing a crush that shocked me, it was the fact that Kenzi had been the first person to use the actual word Fae.

"Really T?" Bo asked.

"Really not the point," Tamsin replied, "we can't just go to Evony and say we think this girl is Franklin's daughter, and a reader, without some kind of proof. If we're wrong Evony will kill her."

"Good point," Dyson said, "she'd take her in to ask her some questions, find out she's a regular human, and then I'd have to investigate the death of my new partner. We need something solid."

"Take her to the Dal," Lauren suggested, "let Trick talk to her, he's known Marcus Franklin for many many years."

"Sounds like a plan," Dyson said, "I'll take her there after work. Do you guys want to give him a heads up?"

"We'll meet you there at about 6:30," Tamsin said, "we'll let Trick know she's coming."

x-x

After hearing what I had, I could have very easily refused Dyson's invitation to the Dal Riata that night and instead gone back to the safe uncomplicated world of the Q Bar, where the most important question was if I'd ever swing the other way. But no, I was currently walking with Dyson, a guy with two very different brain patterns, into a bar I'd never heard of to talk to a guy I'd never met, to see if a group of Lord knows that they were could figure out if I'm part-Fae. At that moment it felt like I had finally developed a sense of fear.

As we walked in I found that it was pretty quiet, I guessed that was because it was early. It looked like the little pubs you find out in the middle of nowhere in England. Tamsin, Bo, Kenzi and Lauren had all turned to look at us when we walked in. This time there was no little smile from Tamsin. Instead I saw a look in her eyes that I didn't like too much, it wasn't quite fear but it was certainly close. She wasn't fearful for herself, it was all for me.

We walked over to the bar, to be met by a few odd looks, but nobody said anything. There was a guy behind the bar, the first thing I noticed was his height, or lack of it. The second thing I noticed was the tattoo on his arm.

"Trick, this is Aeryn, my new partner at the station," Dyson said to the little guy, "Aeryn this is Trick, the owner of the Dal Riata."

"Hi," I said, "nice to meet you."

"Likewise," he replied, "what can I get you to drink?"

"Vodka, no ice," I said, "please."

"A girl after my own heart." I heard Tamsin said.

"Can someone point me in the direction of the bathroom?" I asked.

Tamsin, Bo and Kenzi all pointed to a door at the back of the bar.

"Thanks." I said.

As I excised myself to use the bathroom and try to get rid of the strange feelings of doubt and familiarity, Dyson turned to Trick.

"First impressions?" Dyson asked.

"Her eyes look extremely familiar." Trick said.

"Her eyes?" Dyson asked in reply.

"Almost midnight blue with a slight gold ring around the outside," Tamsin said, helping herself to another drink, "if she had the gold around the pupil as well we'd have our answer. Franklin and his sons all have the same eyes."

"That's true," Lauren said, "I recall reading it in their files when I was digging around earlier."

"She isn't likely to open up to me enough for me to give you a definitive answer." Trick said, "She's on edge as it is."

"She might talk to Tamsin," Bo said, looking at the blonde, "I can see from her aura that she's a lot more relaxed around her."

"And if they stay sitting here at the bar, I'll hear what she says." Trick concluded.

I walked back to the bar and Trick put my drink down in front of me.

"Thanks." I said with a smile.

"So," Trick said, "what made you move to Toronto?"

"Move back to Toronto," I answered, "I was born here."

"But you grew up in England?" he asked, already knowing the answer, it was more than obvious from my accent.

"That I did." I said.

"Where about?" he asked, trying to make conversation, "I visited England when I was younger."

"A little village in Hertfordshire." I replied.

"What on earth made you want to become a cop?" Tamsin asked, sensing she should take over with the questions as I was starting to close off to Trick.

"Technically I'm a profiler," I said looking at her, "I have a Masters in Criminal Psychology."

"At 28? She asked.

"I actually graduated at 21, completing what should have been a 6 year course in 3 years," I said, "after graduating early from school…"

"Not just a pretty face." She said.

I smiled a little and I'm pretty sure I felt myself blush. I never blushed.

"Criminal Profiler to Homicide Detective." Tamsin said.

"No real call for a full time profiler here," I said with a laugh, "this way I get the best of both worlds."

"Did you father go back to England with you and your mom?" she asked, feeling comfortable enough to start with the more personal questions.

"No," I replied, "as far as I know he stayed here. My mum didn't really talk about him that much."

"Are you going to try and find him now you're here?" Trick asked.

"I already know where he lives," I said, looking at Trick, "that's what you wanted to hear right?"

No one said anything, I finished my drink.

"I know where he lives, I know he owns a string of nightclubs," I continued, "I know he has 6 kids, all boys. I know they all live on the same gated estate…"

I looked at Tamsin.

"If you wanted to know," I said, "all you had to do was ask."

I stood up and walked towards the door.

"Aeryn!" Tamsin called after me, I continued walking, "shit…"

x-x

"So she really is Franklin's daughter…" Dyson said, just after I left.

"Yes." Trick replied.

"What are we going to do with that information?" Lauren asked.

"Right now, nothing." Tamsin said, looking toward the door.

"I'm inclined to agree," Trick said, "maybe she has no interest in talking to Marcus, though I know he has been waiting for her to return to the city, I'm not sure how he's going to react. But I know how other members of the Fae community will react."

"Not in a nice way I'm guessing," Kenzi said, "if we've figured out who she is, what's stopping others."

"Shit…" Dyson said.

Tamsin was already out of her seat and at the door.

"I'll make sure she gets home okay." She said, leaving the bar.

x-x

"Aeryn!" I heard Tamsin shout, "Aeryn, wait, please…"

There was something in the way she said please that made me stop. It was almost like the word wasn't one she used very often. She caught up with me.

"We had to be sure…" Tamsin said as she reached me.

"You could have just asked." I replied.

"And if I was wrong I'd sound totally insane," she said with a little smirk, "I don't like people knowing I'm insane until they know me better, then it's harder for them to run away."

I laughed, I couldn't help it. Even with all the negative feelings I had towards Tamsin and the rest of them, I still couldn't stop the laugh.

"Answer me one question Tamsin." I said.

"Shoot," she said, "one question, one answer, so make it good."

I couldn't help but smile at the look on her face.

"What are the Fae?" I asked.

"How long have you got?" Tamsin asked as we started walking again.


	3. Chapter 3

**_A/N: Okay, seems like most of you want this to continue, so while I'm in a typing mood I thought I'd give you another part. Read, review and enjoy!_**

Chapter Three

By the time we had reached my apartment Tamsin had given me a brief explanation about the Fae.

"Do you want to come in for a drink?" I asked as we entered the building.

"Sure." She replied.

We went up to my apartment, as I was sorting out the drinks I decided to ask Tamsin some more questions.

"Have you ever met my father?" I asked.

"Yeah, a few times," she replied, "he's an okay. For a Dark Elder."

She had explained to me that the Fae are split into two groups, the Light and the Dark.

"Are you Dark or Light?" I asked, not really sure I needed to know the answer.

"I'm Dark." She said with a laugh.

"So you're one of the bad guys?" I asked, looking over at her.

She laughed.

"If you were to ask a member of the Light, yes," she said, "Kenzi put it perfectly once. The Light are assholes, the Dark are assholes, but at least the Dark are honest about it."

That made me laugh, it was weird, but through the course of the night Tamsin had made me laugh a few times, it was odd how comfortable I felt with her.

"Is everyone I've met so far Dark Fae?" I asked.

"No," Tamsin replied as I put her drink down in front of her, "Lauren is human, a doctor, she works for the Dark after previously being owned by the Ash."

"The Ash?" I asked, she smiled a little, obviously remember how little I knew about the Fae.

"The leader of the Light, Evony is the current Morrigan, the leader of the Dark," she said, I nodded a little, letting her know she could continue on with what she was saying before, "so Lauren is human, Kenzi is human, she was claimed by Bo, more for convenience than anything else. Bo is Dark, Dyson and Trick are Light."

"Quite an even little group," I said, taking a mouthful of my drink, "two Dark, two Light and two humans."

"I'd honestly never thought about it like that," Tamsin said with a laugh, "our little group is missing something though."

"And what's that?" I asked, even though I was pretty sure I already knew the answer.

"Someone like yourself, someone who is part of both worlds." She replied, "I mean, I know you probably hate us all right now, but we had our reasons for dealing with it the way we did."

"Reasons I've still yet to hear." I said.

She sighed, I could tell she was having a mental battle with herself about how much she could tell me.

"Okay," she said, "as you're part Fae both the Ash and the Morrigan should be made aware of your presence in the city. As your father is Dark Fae Evony should have been told first. She would have taken you to the Dark compound, asked you questions to find out how little or how much you know. If we'd have gone to Evony with our suspicions and been wrong, she would have killed you. If she finds out, the only thing keeping you alive is your father's standing within the Dark community."

"And the Ash isn't likely to have me killed?" I asked.

"No," she said with a soft smile, "the Light have an acting Ash at the moment, and you've already met him."

"Trick?" I asked.

She nodded a little.

"So I probably shouldn't piss him off too much huh?" I asked with a slight smile.

Tamsin laughed.

x-x

Tamsin had left my apartment a little after midnight, after getting a shower I had gone to bed, and for the first time in a long time I had a restful night's sleep. When I arrived at the station the next morning, Dyson handed me a coffee.

"Peace offering," he said, "I am sorry, we could probably have handled it a little better."

"Just a bit," I replied taking the coffee, "apology accepted."

"How much did Tamsin tell you last night?" he asked.

"The basics, the whole Light Dark thing," I said, "the whole being around as long as us… as humans… thing."

"Can you read my mind?" he asked.

"Partly… you have two very different brain patterns," I said, "one is that of a man, the other that of an animal. Which leads me to believe you're a shifter…"

He nodded.

"Can you figure out what kind?" he asked.

I looked at him for a few seconds, my shields down, trying to figure out the brain pattern.

"Wolf maybe…" I said.

"You're good." He replied with a smile.

His phone rang.

"Yeah…" he said, answering it, "where?... Okay, we're on our way."

He looked at me as he hung up the phone.

"We're up," he said, "Tamsin and Kenzi just found a body near the disused train tracks near Bo's."

x-x

We parked the car in front of Bo's house and walked the rest of the way. Lauren was already there with her team to remove the body, it seemed to me that the human doctor was also the medical examiner of the Fae.

"She shouldn't be here." Lauren said as Dyson and I reached her.

"She's a detective Lauren," Dyson replied, "this is a homicide, she has as much right as anyone to be here."

I found it hard to believe that Dyson had just defended me.

"I didn't mean it like that," Lauren said to Dyson before looking at me, "I'm sorry if that's the way it sounded…"

I nodded, letting Lauren know her apology had been accepted.

"It's because of her relationship to the victim." Lauren continued.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Tamsin walked over to us.

"It's Jacob Franklin," Tamsin said, "Marcus Franklin's youngest son."

Dyson looked at me. Oddly enough I felt no emotion for the loss of someone who technically was my brother, well half-brother.

"How did he die?" I asked.

"Gunshot to the head." Tamsin replied.

I laughed a little.

"What's funny?" Dyson asked.

"He's Fae right," I said, "yet he still gets killed in a very human way."

"The Fae seem to prefer that method," Tamsin said, "unless they drain them by accident."

Lauren had gone to her van while we had been talking. She jumped down from the back and walked back over to us, she had a little plastic pot with her.

"The bullet," she said holding up the pot a little, "9mm probably fired from a Glock, semi-automatic."

The significance of that is the only people who were licensed to carry the semi-automatic in the city were the police. Dyson looked at me, noticing I didn't have my gun.

"Where's your gun Aeryn?" he asked.

"In my drawer at the station," I replied, "where it's been since yesterday, I hate carrying a gun."

"When did he die Lauren?" Dyson asked.

"At an estimate, I put his ToD at somewhere between 9pm last night and 3am this morning." She said.

"Can you be a little more specific?" Tamsin asked.

"Not until I've done an autopsy," Lauren replied, "I'll have a more exact time frame in a couple of hours."

We saw a car approaching us. Tamsin and Dyson looked at each toerh.

"Aeryn, will you do something for me?" Tamsin asked me.

"Depends what it is." I replied.

"Can you make it look like you're busy helping Lauren?" she asked.

"Why?" I asked in reply as the car got closer.

"Because the guy in that car is your father," she said, looking at me, "And as much as there is no right way to introduce yourself, this is certainly the wrong way."

"Okay." I said with a little nod.

"And put your sunglasses on." She added.

I took my sunglasses from where they were on the neck of my shirt and put them on before walking over to Lauren.

As the car pulled up I watched as two men got out, one was Marcus the other was one of his sons. They walked over to Tamsin and Dyson.

"You back on the force Tamsin?" Marcus asked.

"No," Tamsin replied, "I'm the one who found him."

"What happened to him?" he asked.

"He was shot," she replied, "in the head."

"Any clues as to who it was?" he asked.

"Not yet," Dyson replied, "but it is very early in the investigation."

I spotted something, the sun was catching it. I put on a pair of gloves and walked over to a patch of tall grass. I moved the grass so I could see what it was. It was a gun.

"Can I get an evidence bag over here please." I said.

One of the crime scene workers brought over a bag. I picked the gun up and put it in the bag. I sealed the bag, stood up and looked over at Dyson. He excused himself from the conversation and walked over to me.

"What have you got?" Dyson asked.

"Glock, 9mm, semi-automatic," I replied before looking at the crime scene guy, "have ballistics run this, compare the bullet to the one Lauren removed from the vic's head."

"Sure." The guy replied with a little smile.

"Thanks." I said, handing him the gun.

"Run the serial numbers as well, see if there's a match," Dyson said, "and the prints, let us know when you have something."

The guy nodded a little and left. Dyson looked at me.

"We'll get back to the station, wait till they call us, there's not much more to do out here." He said.

"Okay." I replied.

We started walking back towards Bo's house, as we passed Tamsin she smiled a little.

"See you two at the Dal later?" she asked.

"Maybe." I replied with a smile before Dyson and I walked away.

x-x

On the drive back to the station Dyson had told me about the last time he had been called to a body at that site. Tamsin had been his partner at the time and they had ended up uncovering a Fae mass grave. Someone had been getting Fae to fight each other to the death in an effort to find the most powerful Fae, then he had got Lauren to inject him with Fae DNA in the hopes of becoming Fae.

We had been at the station for 10 minutes when the phone rang.

"Yeah." I said, answering the phone.

"It's Aaron from Crime Scene, the bullets are a match." Came the reply.

"So the gun I found is the gun that was used to shoot the vic." I said, as Dyson looked at me.

"Yes, and we got a hit on the prints." He said.

"Someone in the system?" I asked.

"The prints are yours." He replied.

"Hang on a minute," I said, "talk to Dyson."

I handed the phone over to Dyson, while he was talking to the Crime Scene guy I checked my drawer, my gun was gone. Dyson hung up the phone.

"How did your prints end up on the murder weapon?" he asked.

"Maybe because it's my gun Dyson." I replied.

"What?" he asked.

"The gun that was in the drawer, it's gone." I said.

"You know what this looks like right." He said.

"Yeah, my half-brother, whom I've never met in my life, ends up shot in the head, with my gun, which has my prints on it…" I said, "I know exactly what this looks like…"

"Come with me." He said, standing up.

"Where are we going?" I asked, grabbing my jacket before following him.

"Some place safe," he replied, "if the Morrigan gets word that it's your gun, with your prints on it, she'll want you arrested."

We both got in my car and Dyson drove us to the Dal.

"Your some place safe is a bar?" I asked as we got out of the car.

"To the Fae it's more than just a bar," Dyson replied, "it's a place of sanctuary. I'm hoping as a favour to me, Trick will grant you sanctuary. It basically means that no harm can come to the person while they remain inside."

We walked inside. Tamsin, Bo and Kenzi were already there.

"Hello again." Trick said to me.

"Hi," I replied, "Sorry about yesterday, I kind of freaked out."

"That's understandable," he said with a smile, "what can I do for you today?"

I looked at Dyson.

"I know this isn't how it's done," Dyson said, "I know she's only part Fae…"

"She needs sanctuary?" Trick asked, interrupting him.

"Yeah." Dyson replied with a nod.

"Done." Trick said.


	4. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Got another part and a half of this ready to go after this part, just need to write it up onto my laptop. Hope you're all enjoying it so far. Do we really think Aeryn would have killed her half-brother that she never met? Read and find out. Longer part again. Read, review and enjoy!_**

Chapter Four

"What's going on?" Tamsin asked as Dyson left.

"You know that gun I found at the scene?" I asked, she nodded, "well it has my prints all over it, and my gun is missing from the station… so chances are it's my gun. And the bullets match."

"Someone is trying to make it look like you shot him." Tamsin said.

"Did you?" Kenzi asked.

I wasn't shocked that someone had asked that, I would have done the same. If I found a gun at a crime scene that belonged to someone, and their prints were on it and the bullets matched then I'd certainly arrest them at least on suspicion of murder.

"No," I replied, "after Tamsin left last night I took a shower and went to bed. So unless I have a sleepwalking thing going on and I walked to the station, got my gun, met up with Jacob and then shot him, I think it's safe to say I didn't do it."

"Did you get a ToD from Lauren?" Tamsin asked.

"Not yet." I replied.

x-x

Tamsin and I were playing pool when Dyson and Lauren arrived. I had actually beaten her a couple of times, which really surprised her. I stopped playing as Dyson and Lauren walked over to the table.

"Where were you last night?" Dyson asked.

"I left here at about, what, 7:30, and I walked home." I said.

"I put the ToD between 8 and 11 last night." Lauren said.

"In that case you're looking for someone else," Tamsin said, "I didn't leave her place till gone midnight last night, there's no way she could've done it."

"I've been in town three days," I said, "who would want to set me up?"

"I can think of one person," Tamsin said with a sigh, "Lauren did you mention Aeryn to Evony?"

"She's my boss Tamsin." Lauren replied.

"We'll take that as a yes then." Kenzi said, rolling her eyes.

"You know what could happen," Tamsin said to Lauren, "if Evony is trying to set her up it's because she wants her dead, her father isn't going to stand by her if he thinks she killed Jacob, so there'd be no objections to her execution."

"Why would Evony want her dead," Lauren said, trying to come up with some reason to justify why she had told Evony, "it makes no sense."

"Your boss obviously knows something we don't." Tamsin said.

She was getting angry, I could feel the atmosphere in the Dal change, and everyone seemed very on edge all of a sudden. I could see Tamsin's features start to darken slightly, like they were suddenly in shadow.

"Crap…" Bo said.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"She needs to calm down, now." Bo said.

I could see a flash of confusion pass across Lauren's face, whatever Tamsin was doing to her wasn't pleasant.

"Tamsin," Kenzi said, standing up, "chill it down a bit, we don't need parts missing from the Fae encyclopaedia that is Lauren's brain."

"She needs to understand what she could have caused." Tamsin replied, not taking her eyes off Lauren.

"I'm pretty sure she understands Tamsin." I said, standing between Lauren and Tamsin.

As soon as Tamsin's eyes locked onto mine her features immediately returned to normal.

"What the hell were you thinking Tamsin," Bo asked helping Lauren to a chair, "you could have killed her."

"That was nowhere near enough to kill her, or do any lasting damage at all," Tamsin said, "if I wanted her dead, she'd be dead."

"You need to get some air," Dyson said, "and relax, now."

"Yeah…" Tamsin replied with a little nod before turning and walking out of the Dal.

"What the hell was that?" I asked.

"Welcome to the world of the Fae." Kenzi said with a laugh, sitting down and picking up her drink.

"For some reason Tamsin feels that she has to protect you." Trick said.

"Probably because I'm human… part human…" I said.

"I'm full human and she doesn't protect me," Kenzi said, "well she does, just not like that."

I didn't say anything, I just walked over to the bar and sat down, figuring the game of pool Tamsin and I had been playing was well and truly over.

"It was pretty stupid standing between us." Lauren said.

"You looked like you were in some kind of pain," I said with a shrug, "figured I'd give you a break from whatever it was."

She laughed a little.

"Are you okay?" Bo asked, looking at Lauren her face full of concern, "do I have to kick her butt?"

"I'm fine Bo, nothing a couple of headache tablets won't fix," Lauren replied with a little smile, "plus if it came down to a fight between you and Tamsin, she'd kill you."

The doors opened and a woman walked in, followed by three big guys who were all wiping blood from their hands.

"Your Valkyrie may need some medical assistance." The woman said calmly.

"What the hell did you do to her?" Kenzi asked.

"Me?" The woman asked, "Nothing. She may have had a slight disagreement with my friends here though."

"I need to check on her." Lauren said.

Bo helped Lauren up and walked with her outside.

"What do you want Evony?" Trick asked.

So this was Evony, the current leader of the Dark Fae. She didn't look that scary.

"Her," she said, pointing to me, "locked up for the murder of Jacob Franklin."

"I didn't shoot him." I replied.

"Of course you didn't…" she said, walking closer to me, "explain to me how your finger prints are all over the murder weapon, which is your service weapon by the way."

"My finger prints are obviously on my gun," I replied, "they'll be on the clip too as I loaded it. How it ended up where it did, I have no idea."

"And she has an alibi for the time of the murder," Dyson said, standing next to me, "she was sharing drinks and chatting to Tamsin until gone midnight."

"Well that explains the Valkyrie's reaction." Evony said, looking at me with a little smile on her face.

"Meaning?" I asked.

"Her little display outside," Evony replied, "you have no idea what you are, do you."

"Why don't you enlighten me." I said.

"Spend any serious amount of time with Tamsin and you'll find out," she said with a little laugh, "and it's going to be an… interesting development. If any more evidence in this murder points to you, no amount of sanctuary is going to stop me taking you to the Dark Compound."

"What am I?" I asked.

"An anomaly." She said turning to leave as Bo helped Tamsin inside, "no hard feelings Valkyrie."

"Fuck you." Tamsin said as Evony and her goons left.

"Are you okay?" I asked Tamsin.

"Top of the fucking world." Tamsin replied, coughing a little.

"You need to let me help you Tamsin." Lauren said.

"What I need is a bottle of vodka." Tamsin said, clicking her neck slightly.

Trick put a bottle of vodka and a bowl of warm water with a cloth on the bar in front of me. I sighed, looked like it was up to me. I picked up the bowl and the bottle and walked over to the table that Tamsin was sitting at. I handed her the vodka then squeezed some of the water out of the cloth. As I moved my hand towards her head she moved away.

"I'm fine." She snapped.

"Aeryn," Dyson said, "leave it."

"You're bleeding Tamsin," I said, ignoring what Dyson said and looking Tamsin in the eye, letting her know that her tough crap wasn't going to work on me, "let me clean it up."

No one said anything for what felt like minutes, when it was probably actually just seconds. Then Tamsin sighed and tilted her head over to one side slightly. I didn't say anything I just started to clean up the blood. As I was cleaning above her eye she winced a little.

"Sorry…" I said.

"It's fine." She replied.

"So, Valkyrie…" I said, causing her to smile a little, "do you always go around getting beaten up for someone you've just met?"

"If I'd have used my power, they'd have been dead, couldn't though." She said.

"Why not?" I asked.

"It would've been seen as an attack on Evony, I'd have been executed." Tamsin answered, "Can't attack the Morrigan… even though she deserves it."

"Well in that case I'm glad you didn't use your powers…" I replied, "thank you Tamsin…"

She smiled and nodded a little.

"This one is pretty deep," I said, I turned to look at Lauren, "Doc…"

"Yeah…" she said coming over to us.

Lauren looked at the cut which was above Tamsin's eye, the one that looked pretty deep.

"It'll be fine," Lauren said, "a few hours' sleep will heal it right up."

"Please tell me it won't scar." Tamsin said.

"You'll be fine." Lauren said with a smile before walking back to the bar.

"A few hours' sleep huh…" I said.

"Yep." Tamsin replied with a smirk.

"Impressive." I said with a laugh.

"Valkyrie's are warriors," Tamsin explained, "our bodies heal pretty quickly."

"And the stories I read about Valkyrie's riding around on winged horses?" I asked, treading carefully as I wasn't sure how open she was going to be.

"Pegasus…" she said with a laugh, "those were the days."

"Bitch doesn't need a horse to fly anymore," Kenzi called over from the bar, "she's got her own wings now."

"Say what?" I asked.

"What do you know about Valkyries?" Tamsin asked.

"Not a lot, actually." I replied with a little laugh.

"Finish up, grab a drink and I'll give you a history lesson." She said with a smile.

x-x

I finished cleaning the wounds, some had already started to heal. I grabbed a drink and sat opposite Tamsin.

"So, Valkyrie's as a species are pretty rare," Tamsin said, "originally we carried the souls of dead warriors from the battle field to Valhalla, it still happens, where there are wars you'll find at least one Valkyrie. Because we are so rare, we get reborn. When we die we start over, that happens a few times, then in our last life we get our own wings."

"So you're in your last life?" I asked.

"Yeah," she replied with a little smile, "I'll still outlive you though."

"She's older than Jesus." Kenzi said.

"Seriously?" I asked.

"By about 1000 years." Tamsin replied with a laugh.

"So once Fae get to a certain age, they stop… aging?" I asked.

"Pretty much." Tamsin said.

"So how old is my father?" I asked, very curious about the answer.

"About 1800 years old." Trick said.

"Wow…" I answered, pretty surprised.

"Trick's older than me." Tamsin said with a smile.

"Not by much." Trick replied with a laugh.

"Dyson is 1500." Tamsin said.

"Ish…" Dyson added.

"What about you Bo?" I asked, looking over at her.

"She's a baby." Tamsin said, smirking.

"32…" Bo said.

For some reason that made me laugh. Everyone was talking in terms of hundreds of years, thousands in Trick and Tamsin's case, and Bo comes out with 32.

I suddenly felt a sharp pain shoot through my head. I closed my eyes and put my head on my hands.

"You okay?" Tamsin asked, her voice full of concern.

"No, not really…" I replied, not looking up at her.

Someone walked into the Dal.

"Vex, what the hell are you doing to her?" Tamsin asked.

"That's the thing, I can't seem to get her to do anything," Vex replied, "humans are easy to control but this one isn't human."

"She's part Fae," Bo said, "now leave her alone."

"Does she belong to anyone?" Vex asked, the amusement in his voice making my skin crawl.

"Back the fuck off Mesmer." Tamsin replied, standing up.

The pain subsided in my head, I lifted my head from my hands and looked at Vex. He looked like a reject from a grunge rock band.

"Who the fuck are you?" I asked.

"Vex," he said, "the last Mesmer, pleased to meet your acquaintance."

"The last Mesmer?" I asked, "Sounds like a tag line for a cheesy Disney movie."

"An adult Disney movie maybe." Kenzi said with a laugh.

"What do you want Vex?" Tamsin asked, standing between me and the Mesmer.

"Evony asked me to stop by," he said, "she sends her regards by the way."

"Why did she send you here?" Bo asked.

"To get a second opinion on your new friend," Vex replied, "and I agree with her, she's certainly more than part Fae."

"If she was Fae her powers would have shown themselves during puberty idiot." Bo said.

"Not necessarily…" Trick said with a sigh, "some gifts don't show themselves until later in life, they can be caused by any number of things, including a person simply being ready for them."

Tamsin looked at me, a look of caution in her eyes.

"What kind of Fae, Trick?" she asked, not taking her eyes off me.

"A few that I can think of off the top of my head," Trick said, "usually Fae who use mind control of some kind, so Mesmer's, Pyro's, Phoenix…"

"And Valkyries?" she asked.

"Yes," Trick said, "and Valkyrie's."

"The Valkyrie power is passed from mother to daughter," Tamsin said, "but sometimes it skips a generation…"

"You think she might be a Valkyrie?" Kenzi asked.

"It would explain a lot." Tamsin said, finally looking away from me, "I need to call Acacia."

Tamsin walked out of the Dal, leaving me sitting there in a state of shock.

"Interesting development." Vex said.

x-x

A couple of hours later I was sitting on the sofa, looking into the fire, trying to get my head around everything.

"Hey…" Lauren said walking over to me, I noticed she was carrying a case with her.

"Hey…" I replied as she sat down.

"How are you holding up?" she asked.

"Honestly I'm freaking out." I replied with a laugh.

"That's not surprising," Lauren said with a soft smile, "I can run a simple blood test right now that will let us know if you're Fae. It won't tell us what type of Fae, but at least you'll know if you're Fae."

"For me to be Fae my mother has to have been Fae right?" I asked.

"No, like Tamsin said, the Valkyrie thing can skip a generation." She replied.

"Okay," I said with a sigh, "let's do this blood test thing…"

Lauren got what she needed from her case. She took some of my blood and dropped it into a clear liquid in the test tube and then mixed it around. It immediately turned a very dark blue.

"You're Fae…" Lauren said, "It usually takes longer for the test to turn that dark."

"Which means…?" I asked.

"It means you're from a very powerful, very pure Dark Fae bloodline." Lauren said, "Which we knew already."

The door opened and a woman walked in and over to Tamsin.

"So where's the baby Valkyrie?" she asked Tamsin.

"Over on the sofa with Lauren." Tamsin replied, looking down at her drink.

"Who is that?" I asked Lauren as she woman looked over at me.

"That is Acacia," Lauren said, packing up her case, "she's Tamsin's mentor."

"She's certainly got it…" Acacia said to Tamsin.

"I was so hoping you weren't going to say that." Tamsin replied.

"It's not like she was sent to you Tams," Acacia said, "She's not your charge."

"I know that," Tamsin said, "but you have no idea who her father is."

"Who?" Acacia asked.

"Marcus Franklin…" Tamsin replied.

"Shit…" Acacia said, looking over at me again, "she's going to be one powerful Valkyrie. I wonder why she isn't someone's charge already."

"Her mother took her to England when she was a year old, obviously she knew there was a chance that Aeryn would be a Valkyrie," Tamsin said, "she probably thought if she kept Aeryn away from all things Fae, and all things Fae away from Aeryn, then her Valkyrie side would stay dormant…"

"You care about her…" Acacia said.

"Yeah, I do," Tamsin said, "and now I know why."


	5. Chapter 5

**_A/N: Thanks for the reviews so far guys, you really do rock. On we go. Read, review and enjoy!_**

Chapter Five

I had fallen asleep on the sofa at the Dal, it had been a mad day. While I was asleep someone came to see Tamsin, it was Joey Franklin, my half-brother.

"What's so important that I had to meet you here?" Joey asked Tamsin.

"There's something you need to see." Tamsin replied.

"Tamsin, what are you doing?" Trick asked.

"They need to know Trick," Tamsin replied, "You know that."

"Know what?" Joey asked, looking between Tamsin and Trick.

"You remember 29 years ago, your father had a relationship with a British woman…" Tamsin said.

"Yeah, she took the baby and took off," Joey said, "figured it was too dangerous to raise the baby around the Fae."

"Well all things considered, it would have been safer…" Tamsin said.

"She's only part Fae Tamsin," he argued, "It wouldn't have been safe."

"Her mother wasn't completely human Joey…" Tamsin said.

"What blondie here is trying to say is your sister is a Valkyrie," Kenzi said, "and she's asleep on the sofa."

He walked over to the sofa and stood by the fire, Tamsin followed him and sat on the chair.

"She looks just like her mother," Joey said, "same dark hair, perfect noise…"

"She has her father's eyes." Tamsin replied.

"Why didn't you call my father first?" Joey asked, not taking his eyes off my sleeping form.

"Because I had no idea how he was going to react," Tamsin answered honestly, "I figured calling you was the next best thing."

"Does she know about us?" he asked.

"Yeah," Tamsin replied, she does."

"It was her car outside the house earlier…" he said.

Tamsin nodded in reply.

"Are you going to be training her?" he asked, looking at Tamsin, who was looking at me.

"Not if I can help it," she replied honestly, "but I will keep an eye on her…"

"Thank you," Joey said, "I'll let my father know, it's his decision where we go next."

"Okay…" Tamsin said with a little smile.

"How did she end up a Valkyrie?" he asked.

"The Valkyrie side can lay dormant in some people, leading them to live a very normal human life," Tamsin explained, "which is what must have happened with her mother…"

"Did her mother know?" he asked, obviously full of questions.

"Probably." Tamsin replied.

"So what happens next?" he asked.

"I have no idea…" Tamsin said, looking at him before looking back at me.

x-x

When I woke up Tamsin was nowhere to be seen. I walked over to the bar, Trick didn't even ask me if I wanted a drink, he just put one down in front of me.

"How long was I asleep?" I asked.

"Couple of hours," Dyson replied, "you feeling any better?"

"Yeah…" I said, "It's been a really strange day…"

"I bet," he said with a smile, "it's not every day you find out you're Fae."

"A Fae who needs to choose a side." Tamsin said walking back into the Dal.

"Light or Dark?" I asked.

She nodded, her face devoid of all emotion.

"How am I supposed to know?" I asked.

"You just know…" Dyson replied, "Deep down, you'll know."

I looked at Tamsin, in the instant that our eyes met I knew what I was.

"Dark…" I said.

A small smile formed on her lips.

"All the best bitches are Dark." Kenzi said with a laugh.

"And that makes me officially your doctor." Lauren said with a smile.

"We're going to need to let Evony know," Tamsin said, "you're going to have to go and pledge allegiance, but she can wait…"

"That God for that…" I said.

Trick laughed.

"Sorry Trick, I know you're the acting Ash and all…" I said.

"I actually expected it," he said with a smile, "your father's family are all Dark, it only stands to reason that you'd be Dark as well."

I excused myself and went to the bathroom, when I had finished Tamsin was waiting by the sink.

"Good choice by the way." She said with a smile.

"So what's going to happen now?" I asked as I washed my hands.

"In the next couple of days you're going to feel a massive increase in power, and you're not going to be able to control it," she said, "all the work you've done so you can be selective about which thoughts you hear will be undone… You'll hear everything people around you think, and it's going to push you to your limits. That usually lasts a couple of days."

"Brilliant…" I replied with a sigh.

"I'll be right there with you Aeryn," she said, "if you want me to be."

"Thanks…" I said with a little nod.

"After the mental side, the physical side kicks in," she continued, "I'm guessing you can fight?"

I nodded.

"You'll get faster and stronger," she said, "you'll have energy to burn, I suggest you use the gym at the station."

"Okay…" I said.

"You're going to be okay Aeryn." She said with a soft smile.

As we left the bathroom a bright light filled the Dal.

"Oh crap…" Tamsin said.

"What?" I asked.

"Get ready to meet Freya," she said, "the Queen of the Valkyries."

"Do I have to bow or something?" I asked.

I heard someone laughing. I looked around and saw a woman sitting at one of the tables, she had two other women standing just behind her, I assumed that was Freya.

"No child, you don't have bow or anything." She said.

"Aeryn this Freya." Tamsin said.

"Nice to meet you." I said, not sure what was appropriate to say and what wasn't.

"Hold out your hand child." She said.

"Why?" I asked.

Tamsin laughed a little.

"Every Valkyrie has a symbol, it's unique to them," Tamsin said, "it allows Freya to contact them and vice versa."

"Tamsin's symbol is a bolt of lightning," Freya said, looking at Tamsin with a smile on her face, "pretty fitting for when she loses it completely, but she chooses to no longer wear it."

Tamsin took her necklace out of her jeans pocket and held it up a little.

"I have it." She said.

I held my hand out, Freya put her hand over mine. Seconds later I felt something in my hand. Freya moved her hand to reveal a set of wings on a silver chain.

"Wings…" I said.

"Wings symbolise a free spirit," Freya said, "someone who can't be tied down or contained… Tamsin can I have a word?"

I walked away, leaving them talking.

"Please don't ask me what I think you're going to ask me." Tamsin said.

"I'm not going to ask you to train her, don't worry," Freya said, "What I do ask is that you try to guide her down the right path. Something tells me Aeryn is going to be like another Valkyrie I know. Strong spirited, free willed…"

Tamsin smiled a little.

"Just be there if and when she needs help." Freya continued.

"Okay…" Tamsin replied with a nod.

"And another thing," Freya said, standing up, "if it's going to happen, let it happen. Stop fighting it, you deserve to be happy as much as anyone else does Tamsin."

With that Freya left the same way she arrived. Above everything else in the Dal, all the talking and noise, I heard Tamsin's voice. Well I heard her thought in my head.

_"__What if I mess it up, what if I let her down?"_

I looked over at her, slightly confused that I could hear her thoughts above everything else. I smiled a little, she returned the smile before sitting down further down the bar. My head was now swimming with thoughts, it was like hearing Tamsin's thought opened the flood gate in my mind. I closed my eyes, trying to block it all out.

"Are you okay?" Dyson asked.

"Yeah… I just need a minute…" I replied.

Gradually the thoughts in my head started to fade.

"Guy in the corner is going to kill his wife," I said, looking at Dyson, "he thinks she's cheating on him…"

"How do you…" he started, I just gave him a 'really?' look, "never mind."

He stood up and walked over to the guy who thought his wife was cheating on him. Tamsin walked over to me.

"It's started?" she asked.

I nodded in reply.

"Kenzi is thinking about yet another new pair of shoes she wants to get when they're on sale," I said, "Bo is thinking about what she's going to do to Lauren later, which I really didn't need to know…"

"Sorry…" Bo said, laughing.

"Lauren is thinking about the results of some test she ran earlier," I continued, "Dyson is thinking about the case, some girl called Cleo and how he needs to go running in the woods… Trick is thinking about whether he should call Stella or not…"

"And me?" Tamsin asked.

"You're worried you're going to mess up…" I replied.

She nodded a little.

"I can control it for now," I said, "but I don't know how long for."

"It'll be worse when you're asleep," Tamsin said, "stay at ours tonight, my room is pretty much thought resistant because when I'm healing I don't have the energy to shield my mind."

"I need to know one thing first." I said.

"And what's that?" Tamsin asked.

"Do you snore?" I asked in reply.

"No," she said laughing, "I don't snore."

x-x

Tamsin, Bo, Kenzi, Lauren and I had gone back to Bo's house. I was sitting on one of the chairs, Kenzi was in the other, Bo and Lauren were on the sofa, and Tamsin was sorting out drinks.

"Bet your head is all kinds of messed up right now." Kenzi said.

"It's certainly getting there…" I replied with a laugh, "In 3 days I've gone from thinking I'm a normal human with a weird father, to finding out about the Fae, to being told I'm part Fae, only to find out that I'm not, I'm a Valkyrie… if the hidden camera guys want to jump out right now that'd be great…And no Lauren, I will not agree to being your test subject."

Tamsin laughed as she brought the drinks over.

"The good lady doctor is fascinated by Valkyries," Tamsin said, putting the drinks on the table before handing me a bottle of water, "we're the only kind of Fae she knows next to nothing about."

Instead of sitting on the sofa where there was space, Tamsin sat on the arm of the chair I was sitting in, for some reason having her close was keeping me calm.

"Stupid question asking which Fae she knows the most about right?" I asked, with a laugh, causing everyone else to laugh, "One thing I am curious about, how does a human doctor end up working for the Fae?"

"About 8 years ago I was out in Africa with my girlfriend at the time, Nadia," Lauren said, "people in the villages were getting sick, it was only certain people, not everybody. The local witchdoctors couldn't figure it out, I came up with a cure and that's how I found out about the Fae. Then Nadia got sick, or that's what I thought. The cure didn't work her, I assumed it was because she was human."

"But it wasn't…" I said, shielding my mind so Lauren could tell me the story without me knowing it already.

"No, it wasn't," she continued, "The Ash at the time was originally from on the villages, he put a curse on Nadia. He offered me access to every resource you can think of here in the Light Compound so I could find a cure for Nadia… But while I was doing that I had to work for him too… Basically I was owned by the Ash…"

"So what happened?" I asked.

"Bo's mom, Aife, happened." Lauren said with a laugh.

"My mom is a Succubus," Bo said, taking over the story, "I was raised in this little town in the mid-West by human parents. Like you I had no idea I was Fae until I came here… Then one night I met Aife. She was the only other Succubus I had ever met, I had no idea she was my mother, she told me she was Dark Fae and her name was Saskia. We became pretty close until one night she pretty much killed a guy saving my life. I kinda freaked out, then she disappeared. Then she used her Succubus charms to attack Dyson… kidnapped me… then sent a guy who she had enthralled, with a bomb strapped to his chest, to the Light Compound killing 6 Elders and leaving the Ash in a coma."

"Then we got a new Ash, Lachlan, he was an asshole," Lauren said, "he's the one who really made me feel like I was owned. As payment for a job, Evony gave Bo a rusty old nail and told her it was the key to freeing me by saving Nadia. The new Ash told Bo that it was a cursed nail and she had to travel to Africa to find the other one of the pair. When she pulled it from a wooden post, Nadia woke up."

I heard Bo's thoughts in my head, she had basically had to kill Nadia before Nadia killed Lauren.

"I'm pretty sure she doesn't blame you for that Bo." I said.

"I know," Bo replied, "doesn't stop me blaming myself though."

"So," I said, changing the subject a little, "how did you end up in the world of the Fae Kenzi?"

"Some asshole spiked my drink one night in a hotel bar, where I was completely minding my own business." Kenzi said.

"You were stealing wallets." Bo said with a laugh.

"And minding my own business," Kenzi replied, "so anyway, crazy guy spiked my drink and followed me to the elevator. Bo saved my ass, she Chi sucked him. She had no idea she was Fae. The next day Dyson and Hale found the guys body, tracked Bo down and took her to the Ash. The Ash and the Morrigan decided she had to undergo this test thingy, then choose Light or Dark. She chose humans, then she claimed me."

"So she basically owns you?" I asked.

"No," Kenzi said, "well technically yes, but no."

"It keeps her safe," Tamsin explained, "An attack on Kenzi is seen as an attack on Bo."

"So Dyson's a wolf, Bo's a Succubus," I said, I looked at Tamsin, "you're a Valkyrie, what's Trick?"

"Trick is…" Bo started to say.

"It's complicated," Tamsin said, "he's a Blood Sage…"

"Which is what?" I asked.

"He can change events by writing about them in his blood," Bo said, "He's also my grandfather."

"So your mum is Dark Fae," I said, "and your grandfather is the acting Ash… how does that work?"

"Aife was originally Light," Bo said, "she was locked up by the Dark for killing a Dark Elder… she then ended up being held prisoner by my father… he drove her pretty much insane. Then to get back at Trick for not saving her, she went Dark."

"It's…" Tamsin started to say.

"Complicated?" I asked, "Yeah, I'm getting that."

Tamsin laughed.

"And my head is really starting to hurt…" I said.

"Then I guess it's bedtime for you." Tamsin replied, "I'll show you to my room…"

We both stood up, I said my goodnights and Tamsin showed me to her room.

"If you need anything, I'll be asleep on the sofa," she said, "all you have to do it shout."

"That sofa doesn't look very comfortable to sleep on." I said as she handed me a t-shirt and some sweatpants to sleep in.

"It isn't." she replied with a smile, "I've slept on worse."

"The bed is more than big enough for both of us," I said, "I already know you don't snore…"


End file.
